Tuesday, January 29, 2008

The series of events during the day on Monday were very difficult to deal with for both of us. It’s a mean world out there... How much more intense and emotional can it get? I was trying hard all day to keep my composure, in front of all these different people talking to us prior to going to the orphanage, and that was not easy. The day started out getting picked up at our hotel around 9:00 in the morning. We had an appointment with Tatiana, the Ministry of Education (MOE) to get permission to go see the baby. She is a very elegant looking and really professional, but again, very serious woman who I thought was reading us our rights (as is we have any here…) while we were sitting there, hoping that our representative was translating everything she was saying and not just making-up stuff. I know he wouldn’t but it felt like it at times.

The visit was only about forty-five minutes long but still a bit nerve-racking. There was a third person in the room making notes in Russian, and who later asked us to sign this record-keeping looking book. I am sure she said what it was and my rep translated it, but we didn’t care; we just signed it, waived our heads, and asked our rep if we could shake her hand on the way out. Once she was done with her Russian spill, she did offer to shake hands and wished us good luck.

From the MOE’s office we left to pick up a Social Worker that is supposed to be present at the visit with the orphanage director and the first encounter with the baby. Her name was also Tatiana. She lives in an area that reminded me of Seattle, with hills, older neighborhood and older wood homes. I have no idea how my rep made it up this hill – he has a small car called the Number 17. Here in Russia they don’t name their cars like we do, they just number them; his is simply a 17! Nice little car that looks a bit larger than the VW Golf.

Tatiana came out a few minutes later with fur from top to bottom while Chris and I were outside the car, without our coats trying to catch some pictures of a Russian monastery across her house. PETA would have a field day here. Everyone, and I mean everyone, wears fur hats, scarfs, boots and gloves that are made out of fur. Tatiana was very pleasant but all business. They take these adoptions here extremely serious, as they should and which we really appreciate. Except, this is our baby and we just wanted to pick him up and take him home, now!!